Flooring construction



W. E. RUTHRAUFF.

FLOORING CONSTRUCTION.

APPLICATION man MAY 31. 192i.

1,40%679; Patented Feb. 211, 1922.

Wimfi Fries,

WILLIAM n/ncrnn'anrr. or COFFEYVILLE, KANSAS.

- Application filed' May31.

Be it known that I, lViLLIAM E. RUTH- RAUFF, a citizen of the 'United States,;residing at Cofieyville, in the county o-f'Montgomery-and State of Kansas, have invented Y certain new and useful Improvements in Flooring Constructions, ofwhich the following is :a; specification. f This invention appertains to an improvemerit in-flooring constructions, and more particularly to a method of laying'hardwood floors either as the original floor of newly constructed buildings, or as hardwood flooring1supplementing=the usual and other forms of wooden floors of old buildings.

The principal object of the invention is to provide for aflooring construction of the class mentioned, and one wherein the-usual nailing of the individual flooring strips in position is eliminated, such nailing'often resulting in :the damaging of the exposed edges of the-flooring strips, or thetongue portions thereof, and otherwise resultingin the presence of unsightly cracks and crevices in the finished floor.

Another object ofthe' inventionis to provide for a flooring construction as character- 'ized and one wherein a number of individual flooring strips are cut into suitable lengths for the assembling of the same intofinished fiooringsectio'ns, whereby to facilitate the actual laying of a floor free from all of the usual defects therein, as hereinbefore stated,

andwhereby to efl'ect a marked saving in the total cost of hardwood floors, and in the layingof the same, and also in the time required for the laying operation thereof. A .v. A further object of the invention is to provide for a flooring construction ofthe type set forth, and one wherein a number of individualflooring strips are cut and assembled'into relatively wide sections capable of being easily handled, transported and laid, the tread portions thereof being finally finished before being laid in position, and the sections secured one to the other and tothe supporting surface therefor.

V W'th the foregoing and other .objects in view, the inventionqresides in the certain novel and useful construction and arrangement which will be hereinafter morefully described, set forth in the appended claims and illustrated in the accompanying drawing," in; which 1 Figural is a perspective view, partlyin section, 'of-a section of flooring constructed is now applied 'rnoonrn'c oonsrnucrron.

1921.1 Serial No. 47213982..

and arranged in accordance with the objects andpurposes of the invention, and, F g. 2 is a fragmentary transverse vertical section showing the manner of application of aflooring section in position onits supporting surface and also the manner of assembl ng and securing of the several flooring strips together. l

eferring to the drawing, (rand b represent a pair of finished flooring sections constructed and arranged in accordance with the invention, and forthe accomplishment of the objects and purposes thereof, and as shown, each section is made up of a plurality of individual flo0ringstrips l0, which are preferably of hard wood and which-maybe in the form of whole lengths; 0r injshort lengths one sliced in end to; end relation with respect to .the othe'r, after the usual manner of floor constructions, and these strips 10 are formed with tongues 11 at one slde edgethereof, andgroovesilQ at the op? posite side thereof, whereby theutongue of one strip will interlock ,with the groove of the adjacent strips, or vice versa. 'Inthe assembly .of the strips 10, suitable cleats 13 are provided, andare spaced apart for deslred or required distances, and extend transversely of the under side of the strips 10, and the first of the latter is laid on the cleats 13 at a slight distanceinwardly from one of theends thereof, preferably with the tongue of the strip facing inwardly "tlierefrom,iand this strip issecured in position by the driving of nails 14 diagonallyinward from the, point of junction of the upper side of the tongue with thevbody portion of thestrip, one nail into each of the cleats 13. Glue or the like to the tongue side of the first of the stripslO, anda second strip 10 is laid von the cleats13: and its grooved edge forced into snug engagement with'the tongue edge of the first ofthe strips, when the blind nailing operation will be repleated. thereon from the tongue side thereof. This gluing and nailing operation will be repeated until all of the desired number of flooring strips 10 have been assembled in position on the cleats 13, when the-flooring sectionwill be ready to have its tread surface smooth finished by the operation thereon ofra planing machine -orthe like, after which the smoothed treadfsurface will be polished in natural finish, or otherwise stained, varnished, shellacked, or waxed, as the case may be. or as desired. Ill-the blind nailing ofthc V strips 10 in position on the cleats 13, it is preferred that the strips be subjected to a. suitable clamping action whereby the joints between the adjacent strips or strip sections 10 will be reduced to the'least possible visibility, and it has been found in practice that this can be readily accomplished with known devices so that a finished flooring section wlll have its tread surface of an appearance corresponding to; that of a-solid surface, or,

as if the section'were made up of a single width of wooden'board orplank.- It is to be here noted that the'last of the strips or strip sections 10 to be laid and secured in position on the cleats is tobe spaced inwardly of the compleniental ends of the latter correspondingly to the spaces left between the outer edge of the first of the strips and the ends of the cleats 13 complemental thereto, also, that the cleats '13 of one flooring section or unit will be 'ofi'set-from alining relation with respect to the next adjacent flooring section to be abutted against the same, the purpose of which arrangement will be hereinafter more fully explained. i j

' In the laying of the entire floor of a room,

I the flooring sections a, b will be'cut corof the latter being either cut off on the line of the grooved edge of the first of the flooring strips 10 thereon, so as to. fit closely against the adjacent side wall of the room,

or'the same can be projected inwardly of the unfinished wall between the studding thereof. After the securing of the first of the sections in position, a second section is laid in position with its inner. cleat endsprojecting under the forward edge of the secured section, and glue then applied to the adjacent tongue and groove of the section, when the secondsection will have its grooved edge .moved into engagement with. the tongue of the first section, asuitable clamping means being preferably used for the purpose, whereby a tight joint will beg effected therehetween. Upon the tighteninglup of the joints between the sections, nailsorother similar fastenings 15 will be passed downwardly at. the outer exposed ends of the cleats 13 of the second section, substantially as is shown in Fig. 4. The re- I maining'flooring' sections will he l jd a d ecur d in pos t n, su esi e ymt l h en i e fleet hasbee' cem le ed-i In newly constructed buildings, when the floor joints 16 are covered with a subflooring of sheathing 17 or the. like, as shown in the drawing, the flooring sections-c, b will be laid on the sheathing 17 and the cleats 13 nailed directly thereto, and correspondingly, in the refiooring of old buildings, the flooring sections a, b, will be laid directly on the tread surface of the old flooring and secured thereto..

In accordance with the invention by. manufacturingthe flooring sections directly at a mill, theflooring strips 10' and the cleats '13 can'be cut to a desiredor prope length for a given sized-"floor, and with a minimum amount of waste'in the'lumbe used; the nailing of the flooring strips 1Q to the cleats 13 can be more readily ac complished and with a least possible chance for the damaging or scarring of the edges of the individual flooring-strips; and the flooring sections can have their flooring-[sun faces finely finished before the/laying of the same, so that a more finely-finished floor will be provided, andf time required for the actual laying. and securing of the same be reduced to a minimum;

It is well understood hat, while the p re ferred embodiment of the invention has been described and" illustrated herein in specific terms and detail, various change's in and modifications of the same. maybe resorted to without departing from the spirit 'of the invention, or from the scope ofthe claims appended hereto. 1 7 'Having thus fully described the invention, what is claimed,is':'

'1. In a flooringconstruction, a plurality of individual flooring strips having their opposite side edges engaged and glued one to'the other to form ajrelatively wide-finished floor tread section, a plurality of spaced cleats extending transversely of the. under sides of the sections and having the said' flooring strips Vindividually lsecured thereto, the opposite ends. ofsaid cleats'being arranged to project from the outer opposite side edges of the sectioman d fastening means adapted to engage'thecleats V of several ofsaid sections at one'end thereof only for securing the said sections in "close edge to'edge abutting position, wherebyj to form a finished. floor tread. surface, the projecting ends of said 'cleats being adapted to underlie the flooring sections adjacent thereto.

2.111 a flooring construction, a. plurality of flooring" sections each consistingof a plurality of individual flooring strips having their tongued and; groovedfedges'snugly fitted and glued together, a plurality"of spacedcleatsextendingtransversely of. the

under sides ofthe sections andhaving' the individual flooring strips aerate blind f nailed to the same, Said sections" being adapted to be laid in sideto side relation 139 and to have their adjacent tongued and grooved edges snugly fitted and glued together, and fastening means adapted to e11- ga-ge said cleats at one end only for securing said sections in position, the ends of said, cleats being projected beyond the opposite sides of the sections and adapted to underlie the sections adjacent thereto, when in position.

3. In a floor construction, the combination with a sub-flooring, of a plurality of flooring sections of hard Woodadapted to be laid on the sub-flooring, each of said flooring sections consisting of a plurality of individual flooring strips having their oppositely tongued and grooved side edges snugly fitted and glued together a plurality of spaced cleats extending transversely of the under faces of the said flooring sections and having the individual flooring strips blind nailed thereto, the ends of said cleats being arranged to project beyond the opposite side edges of the sections and to underlie the edges of the adjacent sections, when in position.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature hereto.

WILLIAM E. RUTHRAUF F. 

